Skeetchestn is a community of the Secwépemc Nation — since time immemorial they have lived in an area of Secwepemcúl’ecw that is now ravaged by climate change-driven wildfires.
People far and wide will remember the images from the massive Elephant Hill fire in 2017 – of deer standing in rivers to shelter from flames, enormous mushroom clouds of smoke. Skeetchestn land stewards are now seeing bright green medicinal plants poking through the blackened soil, alongside morel mushrooms, which are known to favour burn sites.
Traditional ecological knowledge is starting to receive its due recognition, after the Elephant Hill fire left a strong reminder of the wisdom of controlled burns. Without the forest, pit house depressions are clearly seen – marking over 7,000 years of visible use of territory by Secwepemc people.
Finding what remains | Photo credit Lobby Studios/Forest Foods Ltd
In this Secwépemc land, balsamroot sunflower is one of the 80 plants valued for food and medicine. Known to some as mountain potato for its valuable starch roots, it is eaten steamed or baked. The spring shoots are also edible, the seeds are rich in nutritious oils, and the plant holds medicine, too. This plant was one of the early brighteners of the blackened slopes. Is it a coincidence to see this resilience, when one of the medicinal uses of this plant is to relieve the pain of burns, wounds, and bruises?
Another resiliency that has grown out of a deeper, broader vision of the recovery process is Indigenous communities more strongly formalizing their stewardship of their resources, including their understory plants. The Declaration of the Understory is a tangible assertion of Secwépemc rights, title and jurisdiction over their territory. Northern neighbours the Tsilhqot’in made clear in the landmark supreme court case of 2014: “All resource extraction and impacts to the land under Aboriginal title must gain approval from the Nation on whose traditional territory operations propose to take place.” The Skeetchestn’s permit system allows for a temporary land use agreement with those applying to extract understory resources from Secwépemc Territory.
One form Skeetchestn’s stewardship takes is with their Sparks Lake Morel Mushroom Harvest Program. “Today we continue our role as stewards of the land through our management of forest resources, including the harvesting of understory products such as morels.”
As of May 2022, any mushroom pickers (personal or commercial) entering Secwépemc territory to participate in the harvesting, buying, or drying of morels is required to purchase a permit and agree to the Skeetchestn terms and conditions.
To protect their lands, permits for camping within Sparks Lake and Tremont Creek area will also be required for use at designated sites. The purpose is to protect the soil and waterways that compose habitats and ecosystems for wildlife. The permit includes detailed agreements, such as number 13, “Permittee shall not damage vegetation, put nails in trees, cut live trees, or cause any other disturbance to the natural environment,” including paying for or repairing all damage.
Culturally historic sites, anything that may be of archaeological significance, are also protected. The permit holder agrees to take all reasonable steps and precautions to minimize the disturbance of the archaeological discovery, safeguard it from damage or further disturbance, and immediately notify Skeetchestn Indian Band Office as to the location. The Harvester Orientation Guide shares a Chance Find Procedure document, to prepare and inform gatherers if they find sites or objects.
The permit and use agreement set a new tone, and raise expectations on how to respect the land. The balsamroot sunflowers and morels are waking up with the spring, under the attentive eyes of their stewards.
Permits are available after May 9 at the Secwepemcúl’ecw Restoration And Stewardship Society website.
